Medical Research

Objectives

To support the provision of equipment and capital infrastructure to support outstanding medical research groups.

Round Information

Applications

Open:

Monday 26 March 2018

Close:

Tuesday 5 June 2018

Grants Announced

late September 2018

For projects/travel after

21 September 2018

Microscopic image of a mouse cardiac spheroid to be used as 'bio-ink' to 'print' patches to be grafted after a heart attack. Photo Courtesy of Dr Carmine Gentile, The University of Sydney.

Overview

Support for medical research has been a cornerstone of the Foundation’s funding since it was established, with commitments of $54 million made to the sector. The Foundation has a proud history of supporting Australia’s leading medical research institutes, particularly in their formative stages when leverage is crucial for funding and endorsement. Even before he established his foundation, Sir Ian Potter, together with Ken and Baillieu Myer, provided start-up funding for The Howard Florey Institute of Experimental Physiology and Medicine.

Since then The Ian Potter Foundation has made establishment grants to a number of major centres and institutes, including Research Australia; The Ian Potter Centre of Cancer Genomics and Predictive Medicine at The Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre; the National Trauma Research Institute at Alfred Hospital; The Bionic Ear Institute; The Ian Potter Malaria Laboratory at Burnet Institute, and The Blood and Bone Cancer Centre at St Vincent’s Institute, to name just some.

Our latest major medical research grants continue this tradition with a commitment of $15 million over six years to the Peter MacCallum Cancer Foundation towards the new Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre project, as well as $3 million to a collaboration between the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute and Murdoch Children’s Research Institute to create The Ian Potter Centre for Genomics and Personalised Medicine.

Moreover, our Medical Research program area prioritises support for world class biomedical research to bring new preventions and cures closer to reality, through the use of new technology, innovative practices and knowledge. Many of our grants support major initiatives by leading Australian research institutes, universities and teaching hospitals in innovative biomedical research, the anticipated benefits of which are likely to advance the research outcomes of the institution as a whole, and we also place emphasis on research into major diseases.

The Foundation also supports the Cynthia Banham Burns Fellowship to enable clinical research by an early-career researcher under the guidance of renowned burns specialist, Dr Fiona Wood at Royal Perth Hospital.

Funding Objectives

The Foundation has a long-established commitment to supporting innovation and excellence in medical research. Our Medical Research program area aims to advance understanding and improve treatment of major diseases by supporting major initiatives by leading Australian research institutes, universities and teaching hospitals in innovative biomedical research.

The Foundation is particularly interested in projects that encourage cross-institutional collaboration.

Objectives

To support the provision of equipment and capital infrastructure to support outstanding research groups.

The Foundation only makes grants over $100,000 in this program area. Applicants are required to speak with a Program Manager prior to submitting an application.

The Ian Potter Foundation prioritises applications with evidence of collaboration. Please ensure that you have alternative providers of funding, and that your application clearly considers any possible grant from the Foundation in this context. We are unlikely to fund 100% of a project cost.

Applications must be accompanied by a letter from the requesting organisation's Chief Executive Officer or equivalent person (e.g. Director of Institute, University Vice-Chancellor or Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research) attesting to the value of each application to the organisation. In the case of multiple applications in one or more categories, advice must also be provided as to the priority ranking of all such applications.

Medical Research applications are considered by the Board of Governors once a year (Round 2). See below for specific dates.

Eligibility

The Ian Potter Foundation can only make grants to organisations with BOTH Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) Item 1 and Tax Concession Charity (TCC) status.

It is important that you check the Eligibility section to ensure your organisation meets these Australian Tax Office requirements.

Under the terms of the deed of The Ian Potter Foundation and Australian taxation laws, The Ian Potter Foundation can only make grants to organisations with BOTH Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) Item 1 and Tax Concession Charity (TCC) status.

Please make sure you read the funding objectives and specific exclusions for the Medical Research program area before you apply for a grant.

Exclusions

Funding Exclusions Specific to Medical Research

Projects suitable for submission to the Australian Research Council (ARC) and/or the National Health and Medical Research Council (NH&MRC)

Salaries for researchers or research assistants and for equipment which should be the subject of submissions to the ARC or NH&MRC

Purposes which are core to the operations of the organisation and should more appropriately be funded from institutional operating funds

Research projects for which there would be a reasonable prospect of attracting commercial funding

Research funding, scholarships or projects which would be awarded by the grantseeker to third parties.

General Exclusions

Projects that fall into any of the following categories will not be considered for funding:

• Retrospective funding – projects which are already underway or which will commence prior to the date indicated in our online application information are not eligible for consideration• Recurrent expenditure for which there is no future provision• Capital or endowment funds established to fund a chair or to provide a corpus for institutions• Auspicing* is not permitted – the organisation applying must be the one that will run the program or project• Applications for public charitable purposes outside the Commonwealth of Australia**• Applications for projects that have previously been declined by the Foundation cannot be resubmitted• Applications will not be accepted from organisations that have not successfully acquitted previous grants from the Foundation

*AuspicingAuspicing refers to the practice of an ineligible organisation (one that does not have DGR and TCC status) applying to the Foundation via an eligible organisation. Auspicing arrangements are excluded under the Foundation's guidelines. The organisation applying to the Foundation must be the organisation that will run the project or program for which a grant is being sought.

** Geographical constraints on grantsThe Foundation is limited to providing money, property or benefits for public charitable purposes in the Commonwealth of Australia. However, the Foundation is able to provide a grant for activities outside the Commonwealth if the grant is made for a public charitable purpose in the Commonwealth. For example, a grant might be made to an Australian university to enable it to fund an overseas study tour by an Australian researcher engaged by the university.

Outcomes & Metrics

It is the aim of the Foundation that the projects that it funds will have long-term impact beyond immediate key performance indicators and outputs. In your Medical Research application, you will be asked to select up to three long-term outcomes.

The Ian Potter Foundation also recognises that we all can play a small part in broader global movements and adopts a collaborative approach, both in our grant-making and our outcomes measurement. As such, we are beginning to offer relevant indicators from the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals as options for outcomes measurement.

Technical long-term outcomes include:

Improved financial sustainability

Improved health and wellbeing

Dissemination of best practice/new knowledge

Strategic long-term outcomes include:

Improved service system/sector collaboration

In your final report, you will be asked how you progressed on your long-term outcomes. It’s helpful to select your metrics early on, so you can begin to collect information about your success as soon as your project begins. Some suggested metrics can be found in the Medical Research Outcomes & Metrics guide.

We require a hard copy including all supporting documents as well as the online application. Both must be received by the 5.00pm EST deadline on the closing date. Applications postmarked with the closing date will not be accepted. Note that applications may be sent by courier or hand-delivered.

What happens next?

All grant applications are considered at the Foundation’s board meetings, which are held three times a year.

You will be advised by phone or email of the outcome of your application.

‘The Ian Potter Centre for Genomics and Personalised Medicine has coalesced many partners around Victoria and indeed Australia and has paved the way for what is now considered the future of treatment: a personalised approach to identifying therapies that are more targeted and effective. Philanthropy at its best – when a risky but good idea becomes a new standard for medical treatment.’

Immunotherapy has been heralded as the latest breakthrough in cancer treatment. This approach of priming the body's own immune cells to destroy tumour cells has shown success in many different cancers. The Vectra platform facilitates the analysis of each patient's cancer and its interaction with cells of the immune system.

‘The use of the Vectra by ONJCRI and collaborating institutes provides us with a better understanding of cancer and how therapies work - in the big picture we want to improve patient outcomes by ensuring they are on the right trial at the right time.’

The Integrated Clinical Research Facility aims to bridge the gap from medical research to clinical applications, which is vital to improving disease outcomes. This grant to St Vincent's Institute of Medical Research (SVI) supported the purchase of equipment to allow the high-throughput sorting and identification of cells. The equipment facilitates the application of research findings through clinical and commercial pathways.

‘At SVI we are committed to making a difference to the treatment of common diseases and through this, to the well-being of the community. Support from The Ian Potter Foundation has enabled significant advances in understanding diseases like leukaemia and type 1 diabetes. ’

The Victor Chang Institute is a leading heart research institute producing improvements in a numerous areas of cardiac health, including the way heart transplants are performed and streamlining drug screening for harmful cardiac effects. The purchase of a new ultrasound machine enables significant new research projects and helps the Institute attract other funders.

‘This grant is a good example of how philanthropic funds can be leveraged to secure other donations. The equipment is a key asset for the Victor Chang Institute and will increase the number, speed, accuracy and range of echocardiography studies being carried out by a number of highly regarded investigators who are addressing fundamental, important issues relating to human heart function and disease. ’

Professor Graeme Ryan AC
Governor of The Ian Potter Foundation

Donations

Support Australia's most innovative projects through a donation to The Ian Potter Foundation. Your donation will support projects that address areas of particular need or opportunity, managed by credible organisations with solid track records in their particular fields. Donate

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